Jealousy In Unspoken Love
by Shakayla
Summary: This story was written as the result of a challenge from one of my friends. The requirements were that Clarisse had to be jealous and their had to be a romantic encounter. This story is my response to that challenge.


Title: Jealousy in Unspoken Love

Rating: M to be safe

Disclaimers: I own none of the characters (well perhaps Gabriella as I made her up) and certainly get no monetary reward for my writing…it's just for fun!

A/N: There is another version for the grown-up audience…send me a message if you're interested.

Enjoy:

_Jealousy in Unspoken Love_

Clarisse sighed as she maneuvered into the complicated gown that had been designed for her to wear at the ball. She knew this particular gown HAD to have been designed by a man as it was less than comfortable; but definitely enhanced and highlighted all of her feminine features. The dark blue satin caused the blue of her eyes to radiate in a brilliant hue. Her hair had been swept up in a soft style that framed her face perfectly; the makeup applied flawlessly.

The bodice of the dress conformed to every curve, lifting and supporting everything that required that little extra bit of help as her body continued to lose its battle against gravity. It was amazing what the right bra and cut of a dress could do to remove years from one's body. The bodice made her alluring without being overly provocative – as that would not be acceptable for the Queen. The skirt of the gown fell to a tea length, which allowed just a slight glimpse at her long, shapely legs. The high heels, which she was very accustomed to wearing, adorned her feet with satin and jewels which made her feel a bit like Cinderella.

She sighed again as she thought that she was definitely not Cinderella. She had learned earlier today that her Prince Charming had been spotted in the company of another woman; an ambassador from Spain who had long, black beautiful hair and dark obsidian eyes that sparkled every time she laughed. She was younger than Clarisse, by at least ten years, and every encounter she had had with her indicated that she was a beautiful woman on both the inside and out. That fact, however, did not change Clarisse's strong feelings of…what were her feelings towards the woman? She certainly did not hate her…she did not even really dislike her…No, all of the negative feelings that she was experiencing were exposed when she saw them together! Clarisse realized with a start that, for the first time in her life, she was experiencing jealousy! She was jealous of this woman and her interactions with Joseph. It was as simple…and as complicated as that…

She was roused from her thoughts by the voice of Priscilla, "Your Majesty, it's…oh you look beautiful." The sincere praise was offered from her ladies' maid.

Clarisse twirled around and smiled at the younger woman, "Why thank you, Priscilla. It is amazing what a dress will do, isn't it?"

Priscilla countered; "The dress just accents the beauty that is already there…if I may say so, Your Majesty." The woman blushed slightly.

Clarisse offered her a smile and gently touched her shoulder, "Why Priscilla, that's the nicest thing anyone has said to me in quite a while…thank you again."

She made her way through the hallways, feeling slightly encouraged by the kind remarks Priscilla had made. She certainly had many positive qualities…perhaps she just didn't let the woman inside of her out often enough to truly appreciate her feminine side. She was always dressed and acted like a lady…but that was different than truly being and feeling as a _woman_.

She caught sight of the object of her affection as she rounded the corner towards the ballroom. He looked stunning in his black tuxedo and, if the look on his face were any indication, he agreed with Priscilla's assessment of her beauty tonight. She twirled to give him the benefit of the view of the dress from all angles. She had to force herself to not stop breathing as he took her hand and said quietly, "Absolutely stunning, Your Majesty," before kissing the back of it.

"Thank you, Joseph. You do remember we have an appointment later this evening?" she questioned.

"Of course, Your Majesty. How could I forget such an important meeting?" he smiled.

"Well you have been rather occupied lately, I wasn't sure if you could still fit me into your dance card." As soon as the words left her mouth, she regretted saying them. Fortunately, she was spared having to engage in any further conversation as the doors opened and she was ushered in as her arrival was announced.

As the ball began, Clarisse took the hand offered by Prime Minister Motaz to start the dancing. Sebastian was an accomplished dancer; and fortunately so was Clarisse, because her mind was elsewhere as she went through the motions of the dance while her eyes scanned the crowd for Joseph.

About thirty minutes into the evening, she located him. Her body stiffened slightly as she caught sight of Gabriella, the diplomat from Spain, being led across the dance floor in his capable, strong arms. The unfamiliar and unwelcome feelings surfaced again. They were quickly replaced with a stronger emotion – anger! Anger at Joseph and anger at herself!

With each subsequent dance partner, her irritation level rose. She found she could focus on little but the image of Joseph and Gabriella that she had witnessed earlier. The flush that covered her normally serene face was definitely not from any exertion she had put forth on the dance floor. No…this was definitely from the fact that she was angry…angrier than she could recall being in a long time. She excused herself to try to collect her thoughts and calm her spirit…this was unacceptable behavior…not just for a Queen…but for her as a person – she HAD to get a grip on her emotions.

She waited in the ante-room, taking some deep breaths when he walked in. Any calm she had found evaporated quickly as he swept into the room, grabbed her hand and twirled her around asking, "Are you ready?" 

She jerked her hand away…she knew she was being childish, but it was a gut reaction…another thing she was unaccustomed to, "Of course I'm ready. I'm just glad you could tear yourself away…"

He stopped – truly taken aback by her words and reactions to him all evening. In all the years he had known her, she had never spoken to him like that…not in a professional or personal capacity. "Your Majesty, have I offended you in some way?"

"I…no…can we please just do this and get this night over with?" She was uncharacteristically flustered.

"No."

"What?"

"Not until you tell me what's bothering you." He was truly concerned about his friend and a woman he cared about very deeply.

She squared her shoulders and gave him the benefit of her best "Queen" look, "I most certainly will NOT! I…"

Before she could finish the sentence, his arms were around her, pulling her close to him. His lips were on hers, crushing her mouth to his. Shocked at his forwardness and the abruptness of it all, she found that she could not bring herself to move. He broke free and added, with a smile on his face, "I know we can do better than that…" this time his mouth was softer and gently coaxed hers to play along.

The adrenalin from her anger was quickly converted to another very different surge of emotion. She fought with herself to not give in to his persuasive caress; but he was certainly knew what he was doing…then her thoughts roamed down an uglier path…_that's because he was experienced…perhaps he had been practicing on Gabriella_… The thought made her pull away. "Enough! We have to do this and then I'll see you in my office."

If he hadn't been so angered, he might have been worried that he had just been summoned to his Queen – his boss's office. "As you wish, Clarisse," he purposely used her name rather than title to let her know that he was not going to stand by quietly if she tried to make this anything other than the personal matter that it was.

Any further conversation was stilted as the doors opened again. The voice was heard throughout the ballroom, "Announcing her Majesty, Queen Clarisse Renaldi and her partner this evening for the final dance, Joseph Romerro."

Their smiles back in place, she extended her hand as he led her onto the dance floor. All negative feelings aside, they moved as one on the dance floor. Their bodies flowed in time to the music and in perfect harmony with each other. As the dance progressed, their technical precision gave way to a more fluid, even sensual interpretation of the music. For just a stolen moment in time, there was no monarchy, no duty or responsibility, no ambassadors from Spain…there was only Clarisse and Joseph along with the music of their unspoken love.

The music finally stopped and the applause was thunderous. They took their bows and Clarisse waved her final goodbyes as Joseph escorted her out of the ballroom. She was about to stop and

apologize for her earlier behavior when she noticed, out of the corner of her eye, Gabriella approaching. She exhaled loudly and pulled her arm away from Joseph's.

Gabriella hugged Joseph excitedly and bowed to Clarisse, "You two were amazing! You must have practiced that for months to execute the moves with such precision and grace!"

Clarisse smiled; but Joseph noticed that it did not reach her eyes, "Thank you. Well, I'm sure you two have plans…" she indicated with pleasantness that she certainly did not feel.

Then it hit him…she was jealous! Jealous of Gabriella…he would've laughed out loud at the ridiculous notion; except he was certain Clarisse would have had him hung by his toes in the courtyard. He conjured up a very serious expression, "I believe, Your Majesty, that you and I have matters to discuss in your office, of the utmost importance."

Clarisse remembered at that moment why she tried so very hard not be angry…it was very draining. She just wanted this day…this night to end. "It can wait, Joseph."

"I'm afraid it can't. I will be unable to sleep until this matter is resolved."

She let out a small sigh, "Very well. I'm sorry that your plans this evening were ruined, Gabriella."

The Ambassador gave her a strange look, "No apologies necessary, Your Majesty. I was just so happy for you and Joseph, I'm afraid I broke protocol and left the party to ensure I could congratulate you before **you** continued any plans you might have for this evening."

Joseph decided to rescue Clarisse before she said anything further, "Your Majesty? We really must go now." He put her arm through his again and led her down the hallway toward her office, leaving a very perplexed Ambassador in their wake.

Once inside the office, Joseph locked the door. He closed the space between them and backed her up against her desk so she was almost sitting on the edge. His breath was hot on her neck as he whispered, "I find it incredibly sexy that you were jealous."

She pulled back, an indignant look on her face, "I most certainly was not!"

"Save it for someone who doesn't know you as well as I do," and with that statement his mouth was on hers again. His tongue demanding entrance as his hands sought out the exposed flesh of her back.

She found that there was no fight left in her tonight…he did know her…and he had been right…she had been incredibly jealous…She gave herself up to the strong feelings coursing through her body, awakened by his insistent touch. They finally broke for air, "Oh Joseph…I was such a fool tonight…can you forgive me?"

"There is nothing to forgive…I'm honored that you would be jealous of someone else paying attention to me. You should know, though, that there is no one else for me."

His words brought her mind into sharp focus. They both knew they had feelings for each other; but they had never acknowledged them in a verbal manner. His words caused a flood of emotion to break through the walls that her heart had built over the years. She wanted to tell him…no show him how much she loved him as well. Their mutual desires had been denied for far too long. She decided that she would steal another moment in time tonight to preserve for just the two of them. The anger and emotion from earlier faded away and was replaced by molten hot desire, "I feel terrible about the way I acted today. What can I do to make up for my behavior this evening?"

His eyes darkened as he caught her meaning, "You're a resourceful woman, I'm sure you can think of something…"

No further words were necessary as they closed the gap to join their bodies in another kind of dance. Although it had not been practiced, they quickly found a rhythm that would lead both of them to a curtain call they secretly had desired for years now.

All of the remaining emotion from her anger and jealousy spilled out in a more positive manner as she sought to show Joseph that there was no one else for her either, "Joseph…please show me that there is no one else…I find I need more than spoken words right now."

He slowly started to remove her dress as he offered, "It will be my pleasure…and, I'm confident…yours, as well."

CJ

Slowly she returned to the awareness of lying on her desk surrounded by the Joseph's warmth. She relished his weight, his nearness, the warmth of his breath on her neck, and the love she knew he felt for her. She looked forward to taking him back to her room…to do more than release just a pure physical need. She wanted to make love with him as she knew that they were truly destined to be together…forever.

As they made their way, hand in hand, back toward her suite, he lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed it whispered, "Happy Birthday, my love…Happy Birthday."

Her eyes sparkled as she simply responded, "Indeed it has been."

The End


End file.
